(Friendship Goes) Both Ways
by Chrisii
Summary: Law supposed that he and Kidd ought to just travel together, were it not for the fact that they'd butcher each other in less than a week. [Law saving Kid is yet to be posted]


**(Friendship Goes) Both Ways**

Law supposed that he and Kidd ought to just travel together, were it not for the fact that they'd butcher each other in less than a week. This was the third island since Sabaody in which their paths had intersected, and for once they decided to actually work together instead of wreck half a tavern with a petty brawl fight.

They planned to rob a vault full of treasure; supposedly a simple heist given their particular set of powers, but looking back, Law supposed that things could have ended way worse than they actually did. The vault was, rather shockingly, in the same building as the tavern. It was something akin to a shopping mall, but it had everything necessary for daily life to go on.

Shops for clothes.  
The bank.  
Grocery stores.  
Restaurants.  
Infirmaries with a doctor's office.  
Pubs.  
Tavern area on the third floor, complete with a hall leading to another building in which one could rent rooms.  
You name it and it was there.

Law and Kidd were just downing some beers, waiting for the night life to properly begin before executing their plan so that they could blend in with the chaos. Many of their respective crews were lingering around, drowning in women and liquor and doing an excellent job of getting other people as drunk as possible – the less people who could identify them, the better. At least their job would have been excellent if one person would stop sending people away. It was barely 10pm and most of the people were already leaving after having met the man. Law couldn't blame them; had he not been confident in his abilities, he would also have scampered. The man's aura was definitely not one to be trifled with.

Kidd was restless, eager to finish the job so that he could enjoy his night. He fidgeted restlessly on the stool, as if he couldn't find a comfortable position no matter how much he tried, and Law was awfully close to amputating the leg that was continuously jittering against his. It was like Kidd was still a novice in stealing from other people, not a seasoned pirate with a knack for torture.

Law subtly glanced around the room, judging the inebriated state of what remained of the bar goers before finally affirming that they could execute their plan. Thankfully, the bar seemed to be emptying so it wouldn't be odd for them to be leaving at such an early hour as well. He didn't even have time to tell the good news to Kidd before all the light went off at the exact same time. Law doubted that it was a random power surge, but it was the best opportunity they had, and he was about to nudge Kidd before someone barrelled into him and locked cuffs around his wrists. By Kidd's enraged shout, he had been subject to the same treatment.

The generators kicked in, offering a reprieve from the darkness and illuminating their current predicament. Law could almost kick himself.

* * *

The cuffs that were adorning his wrists were linked to the legs of one of the tables, all of which were bolted to the ground. Considering Law's sudden lack of strength, the chains were heavily imbued with sea-stone.

Kidd was still hissing and spitting like an overgrown cat, pulling at the chains in a vain attempt to break free. Law ignored him completely in favour of focusing on the man _on top _of the table. His figure was completely hidden underneath a bulky cloak, and his features almost utterly concealed in the shade of his hood. Despite this, his maniacal grin was painfully visible and made it quite obvious who was the 'mastermind' behind their current situation.

"What do you want?" Law aimed to keep his voice neutral, devoid of any panic or even interest in the antagonist.

"We're a prosperous city, we don't need scum like you here." His voice was surprisingly business-like; not the rough, hardened tone that their adversaries usually seemed to have.

"We're just having a beer, nothing more. We'll be gone by tomorrow." Law smirked, attempting to mask his body language so that the man in front of him would not be able to read Law's worry for the rest of his crew – they were behind the man, but all seemed frozen in place.

"Pirates are not allowed here, and you will be the examples for future pirates to come!" The man removed his cloak, revealing a vest laden with explosives - the reason why his and Kidd's crews were immobile.

"You're an idiot. You'll blow your precious city centre along with us." Kidd rightly pointed out, spit flying from his mouth.

"This centre can be rebuilt but you scum need to be put away. Permanently." There was no arguing with this man; Law had seen his type, had lived through that mindset, and knew that nothing could dissuade him now.

"What about your people? Where's the honour in killing your own?" Kidd wouldn't realise that he was arguing in vain, or else he was still hoping to save his crew, if not himself.

"Our people are gone, scum. It's only you and I here." It then occurred to Law that the man in front of him was the one who'd been sending people away all night – although he lacked subtlety, he had reached his goal; there was nobody but them inside.

"This won't deter other pirates." Kidd scoffed, defiance returning to his voice.

"All of you value your life above all else, pirate. It will work." The grin was there again; morbid, unsettling, highlighting the manic glint in the man's eyes. Did he look like that as a child?

"Please, we'll give you anything." This was Bepo, flanked with Penguin and Shachi on either side and the rest of their crews behind him – a united front as far as unity went, and courageous till the possible end; Law couldn't be prouder of his crew, but he didn't want them to die here, not like this.

"Your deaths will give me everything that I want." With that, his thumb descended on the switch and Law ducked beneath the table, hoping that at least it would contain most of the explosion.

He was only aware of the shockwave sending him careening backwards into a wall together with the table before he descended into the darkness.

* * *

Kidd woke up to a roaring headache. Breathing proved to be a mistake in the dusty air; the coughing fit that gripped him had his lungs burning earnestly until he managed to regulate his breathing. He blinked owlishly, attempting to remember the last mishap that he had been a part of. Nothing came to mind, so he attempted to figure out where he was at the moment.

Nothing much could be gathered – Debris was everywhere. Some flaming, some bent out of shape, and other jagged pieces of metal that dripped with something.

His arms, easily the strongest part of his body, now felt heavy and laden down, as if the muscle was too heavy to lift. Kidd was content to just close his eyes again and sleep for a while, but then he remembered.

Killer.  
Heat.  
Wire.

The rest of his crew had been with him and were also in this rubble; probably caught underneath pieces of the wall.

Law and his crew were also there.  
He couldn't see anybody else.

The handcuffs had not withstood the blast.

* * *

Law came to slowly. He blinked repeatedly, attempting to see through the darkness around him. A ray of light peeked through from between two slabs (or was one of them the wall?), stabbing his head with its intensity in the otherwise pitch-black atmosphere.

He shifted in an attempt to shield his eyes from the light and white hot pain spread all over his arm and stomach, blinding him in its intensity.

His throat felt raw when he attempted to breathe through the pain, but that may be due to the dust in the air. When the fires calmed and tears had stopped cascading down his cheeks, Law decided to be slightly more careful.

There was a pole immobilising his legs. The table's surface was the only thing keeping another pound of debris from collapsing on top of him, so he supposed that he'd better keep his legs as still as he could.

Using one of his hands, he carefully felt along his stomach and came across a bloody gash; deeper than he was comfortable with if he could gauge correctly without seeing. Fresh blood seeped over his fingers and he knew that his hours were currently numbered.

He couldn't see his other hand, nor could he move it. He carefully felt along his bicep before coming across the slab of metal or concrete that was trapping him in darkness. It was also lying over his arm; a centimetre away from chopping it off completely. A piece of metal was the only thing levering it off, and Law felt panic rising despite his resolution to stay calm.

He was sufficiently buried beneath more rubble than he was comfortable with, and he didn't have many hours left to live.

Even if he could use his powers now, he couldn't master the energy to do so.

He didn't want to die alone.

* * *

Bepo was lucky. The blast hadn't hit him so hard. He was a bit scratched and bruised due to the building's collapse, but his thick fur had protected him from the worst of it.

Now, he just had to sniff out the rest of the crew.

Thankfully, only Shachi and Penguin had been with him apart from the captain, so he didn't have to search far and long for them. He found Penguin sitting up against the wall, staring dumbly at the scenario around them. He was undoubtedly in shock. Bepo couldn't blame him; for such a large explosion, there was no reaction from the town itself. Or at least, they weren't helping them.

It didn't take much other than a (gentle) slap to bring him back to his senses after Bepo bandaged the gaping wound on his forearm. He could see no other forms of injury besides bruising. From his breathing though, Bepo would warrant a couple of broken or cracked ribs.

Shachi was still unconscious and suffering from a head wound. Blood cascaded from below his hat, soaking the whole left side of his face and dripping off his chin. For one scary moment, Penguin reached out to feel his pulse. Neither of them hid the sighs of relief when the steady beat announced itself. Bepo carefully dragged him out of the rubble and laid him on a flat slab to the side of the room. Penguin sat down next to him just in case he woke up and injured himself.

A stumbling step caught his attention.

Big. Heavy.

Not Law.

Kidd.

The red-headed captain stumbled and caught himself before catching sight of them. He seemed to take long to connect the dots and Bepo guessed that he was concussed at the very least.

"Where's _my_ crew?" His voice was surprisingly steady and Bepo startled at the stark contrast between the sure tone and the exhausted slump of his shoulders.

"We'll find them." Penguin said from his spot on the ground. Despite the use of the plural, he didn't shift in any way to aid in the search for the missing people. His fingers rested casually on Shachi's wrist.

"I'll sniff them out." Bepo said as he lowered himself on all fours and inhaled slowly. The mixed smells were barely recognisable beneath the dust and the general after-smell of explosions, but it was there. Apart from that, he could hear shifting rubble from the corner of the room. Well, what used to be a corner. One of the walls had been completely blown away to reveal the vault - the only thing that remained 'standing' from the whole floor.

Bepo didn't find it in himself to wonder how the ground had not given way. The bomb may not have been as powerful as they thought then - small mercies, he guessed.

They didn't have much work to get Killer out; he shimmied out from beneath a slab of rock that had seemingly protected him from the worst of the debris. Apart from a smashed helmet and a couple of bumps and bruises, he seemed relatively intact.

Wire and Heat, like always, were next to each other. Heat was unconscious and bleeding from his leg. Looking closer, Bepo saw that they couldn't bind the wound because a pipe was impaling his thigh from side to side. Wire had had the idea of tying a knot just above the wound - at least it would slow the bleeding until they could provide more help.

"Don't move them for now. Let's find my captain." Bepo said, once again raising his nose to the air.

The heavy stench of blood that met him made his stomach churn even before he caught sight of his captain's hand.

* * *

Kidd felt his nausea return full force when he saw Law's hand peeking out from beneath a slab of concrete - it was the only visible thing beside his feet and he didn't have the guts to check for a heartbeat. Thankfully, Bepo already had his ears pressed against his captain's wrist.

"He's weak." His voice was broken and panicked and Kidd could see the camaraderie beneath the hierarchy of the Heart Pirates. Despite not being friends with any of them, he didn't want to leave them here. Not when their captain was possibly dying after agreeing to help him with a heist.

"But he's alive. We'll get him out." Kidd declared, trying to gauge how Law was buried.

He knew that pulling at a wrong side could bring the whole thing collapsing down and most likely kill the surgeon on the spot. The piece covering his head could easily be moved and Kidd threw it to the other side of the room, uncovering Law's bloodied face and slightly blue lips. He probably wouldn't be waking up any time soon. "A slight mistake could bring a whole lot of debris crashing over him." He murmured, unconsciously cataloguing the problem.

"He's bleeding a lot, but he's not impaled from what I can see." Killer reported.

"Yeah, for now. We can't get him free without that possibility. Look at his arm; If we move this-" Kidd pointed at the largest slab of concrete that was half leaning against the metal table covering Law's torso, centimetres away from Law's right arm, "- we cause that pole to fall over and impale him. But if we move the pole, his whole arm gets chopped off by the slab."

"What if we move them at the same time?" Bepo asked.

"We'd need to hurry." Kidd murmured, frowning at Law's current tomb.

"Make sure everything remains steady; I'm going to free his legs from debris so we can pull him out without mishaps from this side." Killer said, carefully lifting the pole and swiftly shoving Law's feet free of it. Thankfully, nothing shifted.

"Bepo, you move the slab; none of us are strong enough. I can pull Law away if you make sure that that doesn't fall on him and obliterate his lungs." Killer shifted so that he was standing by Law's head, pushing Bepo slightly to the side. He seemed reluctant to leave Law's side for even a second, but obediently braced himself to pull away the threat to his captain.

Bepo didn't remember throwing away the slab, uncaring of the consequences. All he remembered was Law's _shriek_ when Killer pulled him out. It wasn't a scream; it was garbled and painful and heart-wrenching and Bepo felt his own lungs give out when he heard it. Grey eyes were wide open and utterly unseeing. Bepo pushed Killer away and gathered his captain in his arms, uncaring of the blood and the dirt and the fact that Law ought to not be jostled so much.

Law was sobbing. Tears ran in rivulets down his cheeks as he shook, hiccupping in his attempt to breathe. It was absolute misery to watch. Bepo tightened his grip, hoping to quench the tremors and use his own warmth as a source of comfort. It semi-worked. Law seemed to calm, but his chest was still heaving when Bepo felt him go lax, utterly unconscious.

"Lay him down, we need to check his injuries." Penguin was suddenly there, Shachi on his heels. They both kneeled on Law's other side, but he didn't react in the slightest. Bepo had a feeling that blood loss was catching up with him - Law was absolutely _drenched_ in his own blood.

"We need to get him back to the ship." Shachi murmured, reaching out to shakily take Law's pulse. Bepo didn't have to hear it himself to know that it wasn't good, especially given Shachi's expression.

"We need to staunch the bleeding first." Penguin replied as he attempted to cut off the sleeve of his boiler suit. Killer helped him and eventually the sleeve was folded and pressed against Law's stomach; Kidd tied it off with one of his belts, making sure that it was tight enough before moving back to Heat and Wire. "Kidd, get your crew to the submarine, we'll take care of you after him. Leave some on the ship; we need to leave this island."

"We need to make them pay." Kidd growled as he made his way to Heat.

"We need to get out; we're down a lot of fighters. It's a lost battle Kidd, we're leaving." Penguin replied as Bepo carefully hefted Law in his arms, cradling his captain against his chest.

* * *

Trying to find all the sources of the bleeding was a long and daunting job.

His bandaged arm ached mercilessly, but Penguin would not allow the others to take over; Law deserved the best they could offer, and Penguin and Shachi were the best trained out of the whole crew for such injuries. Miraculously, Law didn't need surgery. They had taken numerous x-rays, but there was nothing wrong apart from the severe bruising, broken ribs, and too many cuts to count.

Penguin had already lost count of the amount of stitches he put in. All he knew was that it was way too many. He had put 30 alone on Law's back, and another 40 to stitch the gaping wound on his stomach. The others slowly washed away the dirt and blood, making sure that there were no other wounds before bandaging him and moving him to a bed. Penguin made sure that they left one arm out even when they tucked the blankets around him.

Shock from the blood loss had long since set in, but they were slowly countering it with profusions; they needed to restock after this little incident. He fussed with the IV in Law's arm, making sure that the saline and the antibiotics were also set up.

Although somebody else had already checked for head injuries, Penguin softly ran a hand through Law's locks, reassuring himself that his captain was still there and whole. The breathing mask was just a precaution, but Penguin made sure that it would remain there at least until Law woke up and was somewhat lucid.

He hoped that the blood could transfuse faster; Law's usually tanned skin seemed almost grey, colourless. It was like looking at a corpse.

Penguin barely stomached the thought and swallowed roughly against the rising bile as he turned away. There were others that needed his attention.

"You're the one that needs attention, baka," Uni's voice seemed to echo from far away, but Penguin couldn't really defy him. Now that Law was absolutely safe and the Polar Tang was sailing away, the adrenaline was fading and all his aches were making themselves known.

"Shachi-"

"Is being monitored by Ikkaku, and Clione is looking after the Kidd pirates along with Bepo; they'll all be fine." Uni cut him off, squeezing his shoulder reassuringly in a way that seemed to dissolve the responsibility that Penguin had felt weighing him down.

He allowed his crewmate to push him onto one of the beds, but barely felt him removing his bandages. He certainly felt the sting of the antiseptic and the needle going through his skin, but it all faded away into nothing as his own blood loss caught up with him, beckoning him into a peaceful slumber that he couldn't refuse.

* * *

"I'm fine, Penguin-ya." Law's sixth assertion of the day was coloured with annoyance, but Penguin didn't care. It had taken two days for their captain to recover from the blood loss and wake up in his right mind, and the day that Penguin did not sleep away had been akin to purgatory. At least the mask and the blood bags were gone.

"I'm just checking for infection," Penguin retied the bandages around Law's chest and stomach, making sure that they were not too tight before drawing the blankets up. Law promptly pushed them down from his chest to his lap; he had not been allowed to sit up on his own yet, and he adhered to that once he saw how worried his crewmates were, but he demanded that they at least sit him up themselves and let him recline against the pillows – the ceiling was only interesting for so long and at least this way he could read something.

"You should be resting that arm, not fussing over me." Law pointed out when he caught the faint tremor. From what he'd heard, it wasn't a shallow wound and Penguin had not let them treat it immediately.

"I'm fine, Trafalgar." Penguin pointedly glared, willing him to shut up. Law only did so because he knew Penguin had been the one to stitch him up and because he couldn't find it in himself to antagonise him any further. "Kidd wanted to see you tonight; should I tell him that you're tired?"

"No, just let him in." Law allowed Penguin to help him put on a hoodie but shooed him away after that.

* * *

"Your crew saved Heat; he's usually the one to stitch us up." Kidd lounged on the chair, wolfing down the fish that his crew had cooked up. It was disgusting, so Law just kept his eyes on the book in front of him, feigning nonchalance.

"You should recruit a doctor. They tend to come in handy."

"They also tend to suffer from seasickness." Kidd pointed out with a raised eyebrow.

"I don't."

"You live in a submarine." The plate was put away with a bit more force than necessary, and Law couldn't help his smirk as he noticed that Kidd was getting wound up.

"We still sail, and currents throw us around." It was too easy to frustrate him, honestly.

"In your case, you tend to be the one suffering from the worst blood loss." Kidd eventually pointed out, knowing that it was something that Law couldn't really rebuke in his current predicament.

"One time."

"One time too many had it not been for your crew."

It was true, but Law wouldn't allow Kidd to see his mixed emotions on it; he felt grateful for his crew, but he knew that he had petrified them, and it wasn't something he could easily swallow. He hated being dependent on them, especially when it came to medical things, and this had almost killed him.

"I know you helped as well."

"The polar bear got you out."

"With your help and Killer-ya's." Law didn't bother telling him Bepo's name; he knew that Kidd was just attempting to wound him up in return for his earlier comments.

"Who recruits a polar bear anyway?"

"He's a good pillow." And a good friend.

"Sure he is."

"Thanks, Kidd-ya." It needed to be said, and it wasn't above Law's pride to express gratitude where gratitude was due. Kidd just shrugged him off.

"I also got your share of the treasure. Killer managed to grab the bags from the vault."

"After the explosion?" Law didn't even bother to hide his incredulity.

"Well we didn't exactly have time before." Kidd's sarcasm was blatantly evident.

"That's good, at least they'll suffer a bit to rebuild." Law huffed, wincing momentarily when his ribs offered a twang of pain at the forced breath.

"A bit? Killer didn't leave a single beri. Suits them right." Kidd jerked, almost as if he was going to help him, but settled back immediately – at least he respected that Law detested coddling. Appearing weak was not something admirable, especially for a pirate captain.

"We had a good plan, couldn't account for the suicide bomber." Law carefully shrugged – his plans were always good, and the subtle self-praise was undoubtedly picked up.

"Good riddance, he's dead. I gotta check up on my crew and take the night watch. We'll meet again." Kidd sat up, stopping the conversation before it grew too sentimental or too awkward.

"Looking forward." Kidd was momentarily puzzled on whether Law was being sarcastic or not, but the doctor simply smirked at him before lying down, and Kidd decided that it wasn't worth it to ask.

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece nor am I making profit from this, but the story is mine.**

**Hi guys! It's been such a long while since I wrote for the One Piece fandom, and decided that this tiny drabble might get me back in its vibe because my muse has been set on my novel, rather than on fanfiction. But anyway, I hope you enjoyed this - it was fun to write even if it's nothing elaborate or fancy XD**

**I have planned a company-piece for this, but haven't started it yet and probably will take a while to come. It would be with the situation reversed; Law taking care of Kidd when the eye-accident happened! **

**Anyway, feel free to leave your thoughts in comments!**

**Kudos,**

**Chrisii **


End file.
